Hoist



June 25, 1946. F p, LAWLER 2,402,756

HOIST Filed oct. 19, 1944 2 sheets-sheet 1 INVENTOR. FRANK P. LAWLER A TTOHNE YS June 25, 14946. F. P. LAWLER HOIST Filed Oct. 19, 1944 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 llll INVENTOR.

FRANK P. LAWLER ATTORNEYS Patented June 25, 1946 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE nols'r Application October 19, 1944, Serial No. 559,447

3 Claims. (Cl. 254-186) This invention relates to a hoist, and particuapplication entitled Holst, led April 5, 1944,

Serial No, 529,883.

The hoist illustrated in the present application is particularly intended for use in connection with tractor drawn or operated equipment such as bulldozers, earth moving Scrapers, and other earth moving and road building equipment.

Machinery of this character has until recent years been equipped with heavy duty slow speed Diesel or gas engines but the trend now is to very materially increase the speed at which these engines operate.

In the hoist structure shown in the application above referred to, the practical speed reduction is about twelve to one, and that is satisfactory where slow speed heavy duty engines are employed, but when engines of two or three thousand R. P. M. are employed, the hoist there shown becomes impractical as the overall size would becometoo large if it were made to incorporate the same type of gearing. Consequently, another type of gearing must be employed which will give considerably higher ratios of reduction in a minimum of space.

The object of the present invention is generally to improve and simplify the construction and operation of hoists of the character described, and particularly to provide a novel form of gear reduction which may be housed lwithin a cable drum of predetermined diameter and which will provide any reduction required.

The hoist is shown by way of illustration in the accompanying drawings, in which:

Fig. 1 is a side elevation of the hoist partially I broken away and showing the hoist partially in section;

Fig. 2 is a cross section taken on line II--II of Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a view similar to Fig. 1, but in addition thereto showing diagrammatically a brak and clutch control mechanism; and

Fig. 4 is a cross section taken on line IV-IV of Fig. 3 showing the brake band applying or releasing mechanism.

Referring to the drawings in detail, and in particular to Fig. l, a' stationary support in the form of a base 2 and a pair of uprights or bearing brackets 3 and 4 is shown. Secured to the bearing bracket 4 by means of bolts 5 is a hub member 8, and formed integral therewith or secured thereto, is an annular disc 1 which carries a stationary internal ring gear 8.

Similarly secured in the bearing bracket 3 is a hub member 9, and positioned concentric to both hub members and journaled thereon as at I0 and II is a planetary gear carrier I2 in which is journaled a plurality of pairs of connected planetary gears I4 and I5.

Extending through the hub 9 and journaled in bearings I6 and Il mounted therein is a drive shaft I8, and secured on said shaft is a sun gear I9 which meshes the planetary gears I4 while the planetary gears I5 mesh the stationary internal ring gear 8.

Journaled on bearings 20 and 2| carried by the respective hub members 9 and 6 is a cable drum 22. 'I'his drum carries an internal ring gear 23 meshing with the planetary gears I4, thus when power from a suitable source is transmitted through the drive shaft I8 to drive the sun gear I9, this will drive the'planetary gears I4, and as the planetary gears I5 are integral with the gears I4 and mesh the stationary ring gear 8, they will react with said gear and transmit rotation to the cable drum due to gears I4 being in mesh with the ring gear 23 carried by said drum.

Practically any gear reduction between the drive shaft and the drum is obtainable from infinite to the ratio desired and this design also permits the drive shaft I8 and the driven drum 22 to turn in the same cr opposite directional relationship as desired. For instance, if the stationary ring gear 8 was of the same diameter as the rotating ring gear 23 and the planetary gear I5 Was of the same diameter as gear I4, they would merely run around within the ring gears 8 and 23 and no rotation would be transmitted to the cable drum. Thus, the drive would be innite. On the other hand, if gears 8 and I5 are smaller as shown in Fig. 1, the reduction might be eighty to one, sixty to one, or whatever ratio is desired, and such reductions are accomplished within a minimum of space. This is not the only advantage. For instance, it should be noted that the reduction gears including the planetary gear carrier are completely enclosed within the cable drum, thus eliminating gear guards and the like, and further by placing grease retainers at the points indicated at 30, 3i and 32, the cable drum may contain all the grease required to insure ooding and proper lubrication of the gearing and` all moving parts, and will at the same time exclude dust, dirt, water and moisture.

While the hoist and the reduction gearing mechanism shown in Fig. 1 may be used for any purpose desired, it has previously been stated that it is especially adapted for use in connection with bulldozers and like earth moving equipment. Where so used. a brake mechanism must be employed in connection with the cable drum to hold it against rotation under certain conditions. is furthermore essential to provide a clutch between the sources of power and the drive shaft I8.

If reference will be made to Fig. 3, it will be noted that a brake band 34 is placed around one end of the cable drum. The brake band is split as usual and the split ends are mounted on a shaft 35, said shaft being right and left hand threaded at the points indicated at 36 and l31, so that when rotary motion is transmitted to the shaft in one direction, the band will clamp the drum and conversely release the drum when rotated in the other direction. The shaft 35 is provided with a lever 38. A control lever 39 is pivoted as at 40. The lower end of this lever has two connections with the leverl 38. One connection is in the form of a chain indicated at 4I while the other connection is in the form of two telescopic shouldered rods 42. The control lever 39 is also connected as indicated at 43 with a cone clutch 44 which is splined to the drive shaft. A motor driven shaft 45 is provided with a cooperating clutch 46 and when the control lever is moved from neutral to the position shown in dotted lines at 48, the clutch is engaged to transmit power to the drum and the brake bands is simultaneously released. This is due to the fact that when the lever moves from neutral to the position 48, a pull is exerted by the chain 4l on lever 38 and thereby causes rotation of shaft 35 in the direction of arrow b. This rotation releases the brake band. If the control lever is moved from the position 4E to neutral, a spring 50 will reverse the rotation of the shaft 35 and the brake band 34 will be applied to hold the cable drum stationary. On the other hand, if the control lever is swung to the dotted line position shown at 5l, the telescoping rods 42 will impart motion to shaft 35 again in the direction of arrow b and the brake band will be released, thus per' mitting free-spooling of the cable drum.

The particular control shown in Fig. 3 is merely by way of illustration as it is obvious-tl'rat modified forms thereof may be employed to achieve the same result. Suffice it toI say that when clutch members 44 and 46 are engaged, the brake band simultaneously should be released. Conversely, when the clutch members are released, the brake band should again be applied to hold the drum, and the drum should only be released for free-spooling when the control lever is swung to the position 5I, in which position it releases the brake only for free-spooling the drum. While this and other features of my invention have been more or less specifically described and illustrated, I nevertheless wish it unseveral parts employed may be changed to suit varying conditions, and that other changes may 4 be resorted to within the scope of the appended claims.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

l. In a hoist of the character described, a stationaryy support, a drive shafta cable drum lournaled on the stationary support, a stationary ring gear secured to the support, a rotatable ring gear secured to the cable drum, a rotatable planet gear carrier journaled at opposite ends directly on the stationary support, a plurality of pairs of planet gears journaled in the carrier, one gear of each pair meshing the stationary ring gear and the other gear of each pair meshing the rotatable ring gear on the cable drum. and a sun gear pinion driven by the drive shaft and meshing with the planet gears which mesh the rotatable ring gear.

2. In a hoist of the character described, a stationary support including a pair of bearing brackets, a hub member secured in each bracket and extending toward each other, a stationary internal ring gear secured to one hub member, a rotatable planet gear carrier journaled onthe respective hub members, a rotatable cable drum journaled on the respective hub members, an internal ring gear secured to said cable drum, a

plurality of connected pairs of planet gears journaled in the carrier, one gear of each pair meshing the stationary ring gear and the other gear of each pair meshing the ring gear carried by the cable drum, a sun gear meshing the last named planet gears, and means for transmitting power to rotate the sun gear.

3. In a hoist of the character described, a stat1onary support including a pair of bearing brackets, a hub member. secured in each bracket and extending toward eachother, a stationary internal ring gear, secured to one hub member, a 'r0- tatable planet gear carrier journaled on the respective hub members, a rotatable cable drum journaled on the respective hub members, an inter- Snal ring gear secured to said cable drum, a pluyrality of connected pairs 'of planet gears jour- -naled in the carrier, one gear of each pair meshmg the stationary ring gear and the other gear of each pair meshing the ring gear carried by the cable drum, a sun gear meshing the last named planet. gears, a drive shaft extending through One hub member to drive the sun gear, and 'through the planetary and the ring gears the 'cable drum, said cable -drum completely enclosing the carrier and all gears associated therewith to permit the drum to also function as a housihg and lubricant retainer, means at each end of the cable drum for preventing escape of lubricant between the cable drum and the respective hub members on which it is journaled and means for preventing escape of the lubricant around the drive shaft.

FRANK P. LAWLER. 

